When We Were Young
by NeverLander22
Summary: Sequel to "When We Grow Up". If you haven't read that, then you won't understand this very well. This takes place years later, Simba and Nala are now King and Queen of the Pride Lands, and taking time to reflect on their lives thus far. They think back to when they were younger and realize that they truly thought up some crazy plans! Asked for by Raina. Short One-shot!


**A/N: I'm back! Yay! It's been almost two months now since I've put anything up. It's very difficult for me right now to focus on anything. What with school and family problems. But! I'm here now and good news! I've got big plans coming soon! I'll tell you guys all about it in the Author's Note at the bottom of this page. For now, enjoy this 'sequel' to "When We Grow Up". This was requested by Raina in the reviews of the last story. It may not be all fluffy cuteness because of course, they aren't cubs anymore, but I hope it suits your fancy.**

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The sun rose steadily over the trees in the Pride Lands, greeting everything below with a morning shimmer. A lone antilope wondered the fields in silence, shaking its tail and twitching its ears, releasing the grasp that sleep had taken on him the night before. He opened his eyes to the sun, letting the warm rays absorb into his skin. The little animal went roaming around to the water hole, bending down to let the cool water soothe his dry tongue. All until he heard a quiet giggle from nearby in the brush.

"Shh, be quiet Nala, you're gonna wake up the birds!"

"I can't help it if I'm ticklish, Simba, you know that..!" the Queen of the Pride Lands, Nala, and her mate-the noble King Simba-lay together just a few yards off from a tree. "Don't tickle me if you want me to be quiet," she giggled once more.

Simba rolled his eyes, giving her a small smile and rolling over onto his back, looking up at the baby blue sky. Nala sighed and rested her head on her paws, looking up at the sky as well. The two of them had decided to go stargazing the night before and one after the other, they fell asleep in the long grass. Simba had awoke first the next morning and had woke his mate as well. However, he had started to tickle her, causing her to make a little too much noise.

"Hey, Simba?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you remember what we were like when we were younger?" She asked, not taking her gaze off the sky.

Simba looked at her, a curious glint in his eyes. "Well… I don't remember a whole lot that happened before the stampede, but…" Simba flinched slightly at the memory of that dreadful day, but he quickly shook his head. "Umm, I know you were always very pretty," he smiled his biggest smile at her.

She blushed slightly, shaking her head with a smirk on her lips. "No, no, I mean personality wise," She stood up, moving under the tree as the sun continued to ascend into the sky. "I remember we sat right here, in this spot, and talked about our future together," Simba stood and joined her in the shade. "Of course, that was before… everything happened."

"Yeah…" Simba looked down at his paws, messing with the dirt. "Wildebeest Wednesday," he smiled at her.

"You know, we never jumped on Recognition Day, or the Kingdom Wide Day of Play,"

The King gazed at his Queen, nodding his head, he exclaimed, "We have to do it!"

The Queen giggled with excitement, recalling all the games the two of them used to play as cubs. The fun days of romping around the Pride Lands, getting stuck in mud puddles, and exploring forbidden places.

"We never made the Buddy's Corner either," Simba noted. "But we still sleep there together," he nudged her shoulder, scooting closer to the tan lioness.

Nala grinned, sighing quietly. "Best friends ruling the kingdom together," she whispered to herself.

"Only now it's as King and Queen," Simba glanced around, noticing more animals waking up, temporarily taking his eyes off of his queen.

"I never thought that we'd ever be mates," Nala chuckled to herself, shaking her head. "And now mates with a cub along the way…" the lioness did her best to sneak the news into their conversation. She had succeeded, for Simba still hadn't processed what she said.

"Mmhmm, mates with a cu-" he stopped mid-sentence, turning back to Nala with wide eyes. She smiled innocently, waiting to see his reaction.

"Are you pregnant, Nal?" he asked numbly. The lioness responded with a gentle nod, and Simba looked down for a moment.

After a few seconds of silence, he muttered under his breath, "I'm going to be a dad,"

"What's that?" Nala wondered.

Simba looked up, excitement in his voice, "I'm going to be a dad!" He got up, running through the slim clearing to the water hole, telling any animal in sight the news. As soon as he returned, he nuzzled Nala passionately, purring into her fur.

"Oh Nala, this is amazing," he whispered contently. Nala smiled, nuzzling him back.

"I know, my love, I know,"

"Mates, best friends, and soon-to-be parents ruling the throne together," He commented, beaming brightly, his heart overflowing with joy.

"That wasn't all exactly in our original plans, do you think?" Nala smiled lovingly at him.

"Not exactly, but I think it'll do." He smiled back.

They nuzzled quietly for what felt like hours, "What dreamers we were when we were young, huh Simba?" Nala flashed him a small grin.

Simba nodded with a large smile, "When we were young,"

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**A/N: Upon writing this, I had mixed feeling. Very, extremely mixed feelings. Leave a review and tell me what you think! Thank you Raina for giving me the idea to write this little one shot! (Although it is rather short...) **

**As for this news I was talking about;**

**I have mentioned before that this is not my first rodeo here on The Lion King archives and way back when, I wrote an absolutely amazing story, my personal best. It still holds that title too. It was simply called "Memories". Now, that may ring a bell to some of you wonderful readers, it may not. But this story was written by myself-whom at the time was called Kblade. I am her, I am back and writing, after having been gone for almost two years. **

**I am now in production of remaking Memories, and this time it will be even better than the last. I'm not expecting many of you readers to know me from back then, or to know my stories from back then, but I figured that I should let people know that I am in fact Kblade. I don't want anybody giving me crap for any copyright junk. It's my story, do not fret! **

**Anywho! You guys can find any of this info regarding Memories or just myself in general on my profile. Thanks for reading and leave a review if you've been moved to do so. Have a wonderful day, readers. **

**-NeverLander**


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